Reinforced rail-joint bar.



B. WOLHAUPTER & E. P. SOHERMERHORN.

REINFORCED RAIL JOINT BAR. APPLICATION IILBD JUNE 10, 1911.

Patented Mar. 16, 1915.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

Patented Mar. 16, 1915.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

vB. WOLHAUPTER & E. F. SOHBRMERHORN.

R F ED AI JO N B. WOLHAUP R & REINFORCED APPLICATION r E. P.SGHERMBRHORN. RAIL, JOINT BAR.

ILLBD JUNE 10,1911.

Patented Mar. 16, 1915.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

QMW

hniab nnha'aiain' w'oniaarrrrnn, or new aocianLLE, AND not/vanes r.scnnnnrnnrican, or

BROGKEl-YN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNORS TO THE RAIL J'GINT COMPANY, OF NEW YORK,

'Ll. '31, A GQRPDEATEON OF NEW YORK.

REINFGRCED EAILJOIN'I BAR.

Application filed June 10, 1911.

i To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that We, BENJaMrN Wot- Hammer: and EDWARDS F. SoHnmrnRHoRN,citizens of the United States, residlng, re-

spectively, at New Rochelle, county of West? fish-plates,whileat thesame time embody ing areinforcement that secures a maximum strength'forthe bar at the center of the joint, that is, in the vertical plane oithe meeting ends of the rails.

It is therefore the special object of the present invention to soconstruct and design a reinforced ma joint'bar that the metal thereofwill be economically distributed by a progressive graduation so. to

the loads.

It is well understood by those familiar with the art that a rail jointbar in its capacity as a beam, requires its greatest strength andstit't'ness of cross section the the maximum sarong center of thejoint,or in other words at the center of its span, but this requirement ofstrength and stiii ness gradually decreases from the center to the endsof the joint bar. To meet that condition, and in harmony therewith, thisinvention has in View a graduated'reinforcement of the joint bar of sucha cbiaracter as to dispose the maximum amoijiht of metal at the centerof the joint and listribute it in such a manner as to give l. the larthe maxunum stiflness at its center,

with the amount of metal decreasing uniformly, or by suitablegraduation, toward the twc'eh'dsot the bar. lnthe con- Specification ofLetters Patent.

Patented Mar, 313, 3129153,,

Serial No, 682%92.

nection, the invcntion'also contemplates the desirable feature of havingthe jOlllli bflI' of lighter and thinner cross section at its ends,

and at approximately the location of the ineutral axis where thedistortion of the fibers and the consequent stresses and strains are theminimum. is made by the invention for a gradual transition or mergingprogressively from the one cross section to the other.

With these and other objects in View, which will. readily appear tothose familiar with the art as the nature of the invention is betterui'iderstood, the same consists in the novel construction, combination,and a1- rangement of parts hereinafter more fully described,illustrated, and claimed. 7

The essential features of the invention involved in the carrying out ofthe objects" Fig. l a cross sectional View at or near the 7 end the ointon the line 4'iof Fig.

Fig. 5 is a perspective View similar to Fig. 1 showing a modification inthe form or character of the graduated reinforcement for the bar: Fig. 6is a sectional View at the center of the joint shown in Fig. 5, the TlGWomitting the bolts.

Like references designate corresponding parts in the several figures ofthe drawings.

As shown in the drawings, a rail joint embodying the present inventioncomprises, in combination with the rails l and E2, the oppositelarranged side joint bars 3 and the usual series of joint bolts 4. Hence,the invention involves or requires no change in the general form, andmanner of setting up, of the ordinary types of rail joints employ"- v Na m A| mg angle ha ls or splice bars.

Also, provision Referring particularly to the construction and designof'each joint .bar 3, the same is preferably of the angle bar type andconsis'ts of the upright web or splice member 5 formed at its upper edgewith the usual bearing head 6 that engages beneath the rail heads, andat its lower edge provided with the inclined outwardly projecting footflange 7 which overlies and rests upon the inclined top surface of therail flanges. These are the usual elements of the conventional angle barfor rail joints,but in addition thereto, the present inventioncontemplates the feature of a graduated'rinforcement for the bar so asto dispose the maximum amount of metal at the center of-the joint and togradually and uniformly decrease the amount of metal toward the two endsof the bar. Also, it is proposed to provide a progressive change incross section of the bar whereby the same shall be of a lighter andthinner cross, section at its end than. at the center. This specialreinforcement and distribution of metal in the bod of the bar iseflected primarily by a thic ening of the bar at its center, andgradually decreasing the amount of metal toward the two ends of thebar.: In other words, the joint bar is reinforced by adding metal tothebody thereof at its central portion in its bearing headas indicated atA, in its web part, as indicated at B, and in-its foot flangemr footpiece, as indicated at C, the resultant cross section being plainlyshown by the corresponding reference letters in Fig. 3 of the drawings.v

The central reinforcement A at the head of the. joint bar may be in theform of an outstanding continuous unshouldered rib that tapers from itsmaximum projection at the center of the bar toward both ends of the bar,and the terminals of the said reinforcin rib merge into the outersurface or face of the bar body. The center reinforcement B in the webpart of the bar is a thickening of the bar atthat point, and thisthickening is tapered off or gradually decreased toward the ends of the:bar asis evident from'the illustration in Figs. 1 ,to. 4: inclusiveof'the drawings. he center reinforce;

" ment 0 in the foot flange ofthe bar consists of a thickening and wi atthe center ofthe bar of this thickening and ends of the bar, as may beplainly seen from Figs. 2, 3 and 4: of the drawings.

In addition to the features above referred to,.there is combinedtherewith the progressivechange in cross section hereinbefore-mentioned,and in conening of said flange and the tapering ofi' widening toward thenection with this latter feature it may be explained that at each endthe joint bar is made relativel thinas indicated at D; by

Y inclining the mner face of its .web downlwa-rdly and outwardly, sincethe point D is graduated reinforcing the approximate location of theneutral axis where the distortion of the fibers and the consequentstresses and strains are the minimum. From D the thickness is gradually.increased toward the center of the joint by the central part of the barand to give to that part of the bar an I-beam formation wherein anenlarged head portion, having a projection both inwardly and outwardly,is connected with an enlarged foot portion by a substantially verticaland relatively nar-- row web-portion.

In Figs. 5 and 6 of the drawings there is illustrated a'modificationwherein the reinforcement, particularly at the top and bottom edges ofthe joint bar is effected by stepped ribs A and C, producing graduatedsteps performing'the function of the elements A and G hereinbeforereferred to. In other respects the modified structure is tthe same asthebar already described, and

.similar references will apply to similar parts in the differentfigures.

Various changes in the form, proportion and minor details ofconstruction, as fall within the scope of the appended claims, may be.resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of theadvan tages of the invention.

.We claim;

A splice bar provided with a central portion having therein an I-beamdistribution of metaL'and end portions having there- 'in anL-beamdistribution of metal.

2. A splice bar provided with a central portion having a horizontallyenlarged head and a substantially vertical web connecting with saidhead, and end portions having downwardly and outwardly inclining webs.3. A splice bar provided at its central part with an,I-beam distributionof metal including a horizontally enlarged head-haw ing an outwardly,projectingrib which decreases in depth and width toward the relativelythinner ends of the bar.

4:. A rail joint bar provided at its central part with a substantiallyvertical inner face, and at its end portions with inclined inner faces.

5. A rail joint bar having its central part thickened and its end.ortions relatively thinner than, and of a ifi'erent cross section from,the thickened part, the thickness of the bar body being graduallyincreased from the end portions toward thecenter by changing the angleof the inner face of the our signatures in the presence of "We Wit- Webpart of the bar. nesses.

(S. A rail joint bar having its central part thickened and provided witha substantially vertical inner face, and its end portions relativelythinner than said thickened part and Witnesses: provided with inclinedinner faces. T. A. BRANION,

In testimony whereof We hereunfio afiix EUGENE Hnrwoon.

BENJAMIN WOLHAUPTER. EDWARDS r. soinnnirnneRn.-

